Halliburton curtailing business activity in Venezuela

CARACAS, April 22 (Reuters) - U.S. oil services firm
Halliburton Co has decided to begin curtailing activity
in Venezuela, the company said on Friday, less than two weeks
after Schlumberger Ltd announced a similar decision as a
result of payment difficulties.

Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA has struggled to settle
unpaid bills to service firms as a result of low oil prices and
heavy bond payments that the company must make this year.

"During the quarter we made the decision to begin curtailing
activity in Venezuela," Halliburton said in an earnings release.

Contacted for further details, a company representative said
no additional information was available.

Halliburton's revenue in Latin America decreased 22 percent
in the first quarter to $541 million as result of reduced
activity in Mexico, Brazil and Colombia. Its regional operating
income was $48 million, a 51 percent decrease, the company said.

Schlumberger, the world's No. 1 oil services company, said
last week that it was reducing operations in Venezuela because
it could not increase its accounts receivable balance beyond
existing levels.

PDVSA did not immediately respond to an email seeking
comment. In its 2014 financial results, the company reported
debts to providers of close to $21 billion.
(Reporting by Brian Ellsworth and Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by
Matthew Lewis)